The beginning of Israel’s performance was almost inaudible. The audience was booing until the last second

Before the second semi-final and 2024, thousands of protesters took to the streets of Malmo. Reason? Participation in the Israeli competition. It is worth recalling that at least 35,000 Palestinians have been killed since Israel began its invasion of Palestine in October last year. The open war is a revenge for the terrorist attack carried out by Hamas – the terrorists killed 1,139 Israeli civilians and kidnapped others. For several months, Israel has been attacking, in addition to military targets, hospitals, refugee camps and residential districts in response – in many people’s opinion a decidedly disproportionate response.

Eurovision 2024. Israel’s performance was drowned out by boos from the very beginning

Some fans of the event accuse the Eurovision organizers of double standards. When Russia invaded Ukraine, Putin’s country could not appear at the competition. The event’s creators not only allowed Israel to fight for the win, but also banned Pakistani flags from being brought into the arena in Malmo. Also, the competition participants could not manifest their views on the matter in any way, which several of them managed to do anyway.

Dissatisfaction with Israel’s presence on stage was palpable even before Eden Golan took the stage. The Netherlands and Joost Klein were to perform fifth in the final with the song “Europapa”. Until the very finale, it was not known whether Joost would go on stage at all – on Friday evening, the EBU stated that the singer had committed verbal violence against one of the concert staff. On Saturday, he was finally disqualified from the competition, so Israel appeared on the schedule instead. The singer was greeted by loud booing, which the organizers failed to completely silence.

Eden Golan kept a straight face until the end

The whistling and booing continued until the end of Eden Golan’s performance. You could hear the audience’s reactions every time Golan’s vocals faded out. The artist showed great control. She didn’t let herself get upset and kept a straight face until the end. Leaving the stage, she thanked for the performance.